Sadly, it’s been a few months since I participated in Food n’ Flix, a monthly event that combines food and movies to turn them into an entertaining culinary experience. I especially almost could have kicked myself in my own overly-padded derrière for missing out on sharing my thoughts on The Princess Bride, since it just happens to be one of my most favorite movies ever, ever, ever. Then there was last month’s movie Volver, which I actually attempted to watch at the last moment, only to discover that the DVD was split completely in half. While I did eventually end up watching it on Amazon Prime Video, it was past the event deadline, which means that I was forced to eat the entire block of Manchego cheese I had purchased for the recipe I was hoping to create, all by myself. Let’s just say that I may have a little bit of a cheese belly right now and that my tummy may or may not look like I’m actually carrying a watermelon.

Speaking of carrying a watermelon, this month’s Food n’ Flix movie, chosen by Chef Sarah Elizabeth is a real classic and also just so happens to be the very first movie that I ever purchased for myself. I was in my teens when Dirty Dancing was released and I saved my allowance for what seemed like ages in order to head to the video store and buy it in VHS format. Hey, at least I said VHS and not Beta, right? Many years later, I treasure this movie just as much as I did back then and still find that I can watch it over and over again without every tiring of it. I am always reminded of the long summer months as a teen that I spent watching Baby and Johnny dance the days away in the Catskills, with me dancing and singing right along beside them. And yes, in all honesty, I still dance and sing right along with them all these years later. Some things never change. Like me, looking more and more like I’m carrying a watermelon, as each year passes. Oh well, that’s what having the “time of your life” is about, right?

Ingredients:

3 Cups Puréed Watermelon

2 Cups Diced Peeled Watermelon Rind

2 1/2 Cups Granulated Sugar

1/4 Cup Fresh Lemon Juice

1/2 Teaspoon Kosher Salt

1 (1.75-oz.) Box Pectin

Directions:

Place all of the ingredients, except for the pectin, into a large non-reactive metal saucepan over high heat, stirring constantly. Bring the sauce to a rolling boil.

When the sauce begins to foam up and almost overflow the saucepan, reduce the heat just enough to keep it from overflowing, add the pectin, and then stir vigorously for 5 minutes.

Place the sauce into very clean and dry glass or plastic canning jars, place the lids on lightly, and then allow to come to room temperature.

Tighten the lids on the jars and then refrigerate or freeze for later use.

Suggestions:

Try to remove any seeds from the watermelon before you purée it in a blender.

For the watermelon rind, make sure that there is still about 1-4-inch of pink watermelon flesh still on it. Peel off the outer dark watermelon rind and then dice it into small pieces. This rind will give some texture to the sauce and make it look pretty in the jars.

Use a very large non-reactive metal saucepan to make this sauce in, so that the sauce does not actually overflow the pan and make a mess out of your stovetop.

Drizzle this sauce on your morning toast, biscuit, or croissant.

I highly suggest using these Ball Plastic Freezer Jars to store and/or freeze your watermelon sauce in. They are a bit more forgiving than glass jars when it comes to storage due to their stacking capability. I have been seriously impressed by them and would highly recommend them to anyone, especially those, who like me, choose to freeze their jam or sauce instead of processing it in a water bath.

Improvements:

Use this sauce as a simple syrup in your favorite cocktail.

Drizzle this sauce over sliced pound cake for a real summer treat.

Replace the jam or preserves in your favorite crockpot meatball recipe with this sweet sauce.

Before you jar the sauce, stir 1-teaspoon of vanilla into it.

Use this Collapsible Funnel to fill your jars with sauce and prevent a sticky mess in your kitchen.

This recipe will yield enough sauce to fill three or four jars, depending on the size of the jars that you use. Why not use these Waterproof Personalizable Jar Labels/Stickers to label each jar with and give a few away as a gift?

Don’t let this recipe slip away. How often do you find a recipe intriguing, yet forget where to find it when you finally get the hankering to make it? Instead of digging through old posts or wandering aimlessly around on the internet, why not Pin this recipe to Pinterest where you can find it when you eventually need it? Simply Pin the image above and you’ll have it when that time comes.

Want to participate in Food ‘n Flix? Drop by the Food n’ Flix site to learn more. You don’t even have to be a food blogger to get in on the fun. Simply check out this month’s featured movie, watch it by yourself or as a family, and then develop a recipe inspired by the characters, scenery, or food portrayed in the flick. Next month’s movie is Secondhand Lions for those of you who want to join in on the fun.

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